The invention relates to electrical actuators capable of generating an angular torque, referred to below as rotary actuators. In one particular example, to be more specifically described, the invention relates to rotary actuators which may be used to operate a microwave switch, that is, a switch capable of moving a microwave coupling arrangement between two discrete positions in each of which it couples a respective path for microwave energy; however, the invention is not limited to rotary actuators for such applications.